Rear Guard

"Rumble—!!"

The outer sea on both sides of Egghead's causeway let out a collapse-like roar at that instant.

As the Ashen's deep-sea submersible chamber gave one final heavy "click" beneath the surface as it sealed shut, the hours-long life-and-death purge of Future Science Island finally drew every thread of causality tightly back to the final core battlefield.

"Yee~ What surprisingly fierce determination. It looks like I really won't be able to clock out early today..."

High in the sky, Kizaru Borsalino had been nailed to the other side by countless rubber shields from pure-white Nika Luffy. Behind his dark gold sunglasses, his eyes had turned glacially cold.

With a backhanded swing, he drew the pitch-black Ama no Murakumo Sword across the air, creating a curtain of light stretching a full thousand meters. His entire body became countless refracted golden beams as he fiercely wrestled with Luffy's bizarre, unfettered rubber Divine Might, while the corner of his eye remained fixed on the rapidly retreating shoreline.

Because in that direction, the last remaining sparks had already obtained their tickets to the new era.

"Sanji! Kuma! Get the doctor aboard immediately! We'll hold the line here!"

Amid the thunder and flames filling the causeway ruins, Jinbe's tall blue Fish-Man body was covered in crisscrossing, horrific bloody wounds. He thrust his steady, ocean-like hands forward, using the last of his drained strength to unleash a Warai Palm Strike that forcibly drove back a pursuing vice admiral, then let out a thunderous roar toward the rear.

"Leave it to me, Jinbe!"

Drenched in sweat, with even his black suit burned into charred scraps, Sanji pushed his knightly spirit and Geppo speed to their limits.

He did not even spare a second to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth. His arms, like a